When home sweet home becomes hell

Earlier this week, 70-year-old Richard Dawe was jailed for 12 months for being the "neighbour from hell", terrorising those living near him in the pretty village of Castlemorton, near Malvern.

The white beard and ready smile were in stark contrast to the image painted during his trial of a self-styled Godfather who left a trail of misery in his wake.

During a week-long trial at Worcester Crown Court in August, a jury heard how the pensioner, stood on an ant-hill, adopted a stance like a soldier and shouted "the Don rules" before raining verbal abuse on sales manager Paul Clifton in a pattern of intimidation that had lasted years.

The heavily built six footer has attacked a woman with a walking stick, made peacock noises near another woman's home prompting her to drown out the sound with her radio and verbally abused his neighbours.

During the trial, the court heard how Dawe, who has lived at his home in Hollybed Street, Castlemorton, since 1939, called neighbour James Schooling a "scumbag" likening his house to a "tart's boudoir" because it had a beaded curtain over a door.

Dawe kept four peacocks, 20 guinea-fowl, 30 geese, 40 sheep, a number of chickens and two dogs, but while prosecutor Ian Ball said the pensioner came across as eccentric, he was the "neighbour from hell who was likely to grind you down".

To Dawe, however, it was he who was the victim. In court he described himself as "pro-social". He said: "I haven't got an anti social bone in my body." He said he welcomed new neighbours when they first arrived, but they turned against him over the years.

Defence counsel, Mary Loram, said Dawe's case was that his neighbours had a collective tendency to let events get out of proportion and resorted to melodrama.

However, after conviction, the jury heard that Dawe's police record reflected years of friction with his neighbours, including harassment, common assault, sending an offensive letter and threatening behaviour.

And even an anti social behaviour order (ASBO) designed by the Government to curb unruly behaviour, had failed to dent Dawe's tirade. When the ASBO was made by Worcester magistrates in March, 2000, in a bid to reign in his behaviour, he simply ignored it.

But what happens when you move into a new home and your dreams of sharing more than a cup of sugar over the picket fence turn sour?

Ken Allcock was co-ordinator and lead mediator of Worcester-based South Worcestershire Mediation Service for five years before the charity closed in December last year through lack of funding.

"Communication between neighbours is essential," said Mr Allcock, who said he would like to see the service up and running again.

"Mediation is only appropriate in the early stages of a disagreement when both parties are willing to take part.

"Disputes can start for a variety of reasons. Most of the cases we dealt with were to do with noise. Radios, DIY noise but also parking, rubbish and pets. We were dealing with around 150 cases a year towards the end.

"My point of view is that I need to have a positive relationship with my neighbour then I've got a chance of saying 'this is affecting me, how is affecting you?' It's important to communicate from the start."

Dawe was jailed on Tuesday for breaching an ASBO three times and for assaulting a woman.

In jailing Dawe, Judge David Matthews, sitting at Birmingham Crown Court, said: "You need to know that Parliament has provided for a maximum penalty of five years in prison for breaching an anti social behaviour order. A breach of an anti social behaviour order is to be regarded as a serious matter.

Judge Matthews made a new 10-year anti social behaviour order and warned Dawe: "If you continue the behaviour that has brought you before crown court, and are again convicted of anti social behaviour, or some other offence relating to it, the courts are likely to take the view that any sentence will be a considerable one, regardless of your age."